Golden Oriole by Stef McElwee

Submitting historical data to the RBBP

The archives of the RBBP go back to 1973. Ever since then we have attempted to compile and collate all records of rare breeding birds in the UK which show some evidence of breeding, allowing us to publish annual figures on the status of these species. Data have been collected from county bird records, surveys and institutions; some records have been submitted directly to us from the original observers.

Despite our best efforts, some records have never been submitted to us, particularly in the early years of our existence. Especially in the 1970s, there was an air of secrecy and suspicion about sharing secretive records, such as those of Golden Oriole (left). We believe that after almost 50 years as an independent body with tried and tested protocols such attitudes belong in the past, though there are some still to be convinced. We ask that if you know of such records, not published by the RBBP in our annual reports., that you submit them in confidence to the Secretary.

In addition, in some years, county recorders were unable to collate their local records and data for those years from those areas were then not submitted. We have tried to fill in those gaps from published county bird reports, but still there may be records missing.

In order to have the best annual figures available, we always welcome additional historical records. We have an excel spreadsheet which allows the submission of data from multiple years and multiple recording areas. You can download it here.